Report shows future for UK construction looks bleak

A Construction Skills Network report has suggested that the construction industry in the UK will not recover its pre-recession peak level of output until 2022.

It claimed that the depressing outlook follows “one of the most difficult periods since World War II” and said that the sector lost 60,000 jobs in 2012.

Commenting on the findings, Judy Lowe, Deputy Director of CITB-ConstructionSkills, the industry training body that put the report together, said:

“Construction found itself at the heart of a perfect storm in 2012.

Get our essential weekday HR news and updates. Phone This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Work Email Keep up with the latest in HR... This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_form This field is hidden when viewing the form Optin_date Year Month Day This field is hidden when viewing the form Batch_Newsletter

“The sector has been hit hard by a combination of public sector spending cuts and a lack of investment in the private sector.”

It has reported that public sector construction fell 20% last year, while infrastructure fell 15%, commercial construction 10% and private housing 5%.

Unfortunately, it has been suggested that construction employment is expected to continue to fall every year until 2016.

The report went onto claim that Greater London will provide the only major bright spot over the coming five years, with most other parts of the country suffering continued contraction.